Black bucks appear as Tiger's custody extended

The Pioneer , Monday, June 20, 2005
Correspondent : Rajeev R Roy
Rajeev R Roy / New Delhi

At around 8.40 am on Sunday in Kilarod village in Jhajjar, Haryana, Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, whose police remand was extended for another day, faced an embarrassing situation. Four black bucks appeared on the scene from the nearby jungles and Mr Pataudi could not resist the temptation to take a glimpse.

The police had taken him to the spot where he allegedly hunted a black buck and two hares on June 3 night. "When the villagers started shouting pointing the presence of black bucks, Mr Pataudi too could not hold his temptation to look at the wild animals," a police official told The Pioneer on Sunday.

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Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Sudhir Jeewan on Sunday extended his police remand by a day. The setback came at a time when Tiger of the erstwhile Pataudi riyasat might not have fully coped with the pang of spending a day and night in a small room at Jhajjar Police Station.

Police sought the extension of his remand to recover the registration certificate (RC) of Gypsy allegedly used in poaching the wild animals. The Court of CJM would take up his bail application at 11 am on Monday.

"Though RC has no relevance in the case, it is the discretion of the police to seek the extension of Mr Pataudi's remand. Which is why we did not even oppose when the local police moved the petition, urging the court to extend his remand for another day," Shyam Sunder Goel, counsel of Mr Pataudi, told The Pioneer on phone.

DSP Tika Ram, Sumit Kumar, in-charge of Jhajjar Police Station, SI Kaptan Singh and other police personnel escorted Mr Pataudi to the spot of incident. "It was part of our investigation in the case that is moving in the right direction. Mr Pataudi is co-operating with us," Jhajjar Superintendent of Police Hanief Qureshi said.

Mr Qureshi said since the RC of Gypsy was not yet recovered, "We pleaded the court for extending his police remand for a day." The recovery of RC would establish the ownership of the vehicle that the police recovered during a raid from Mr Pataudi's B-2/10, Vasant Vihar residence.

About Mr Pataudi's health, Mr Qureshi claimed he was hale and hearty. He was on Sunday even admitted to Jhajjar Civil Hospital when Mr Pataudi, 65, complained of mild chest pain. Dr VP Maheshwari, chief medical officer (CMO), diagnosed him and declared him fit for producing before the Court.

Mr Qureshi said the police would oppose Mr Pataudi's regular bail application but would not seek his police custody. "We will seek his judicial custody," Mr Qureshi said. The Court has also allowed the counsel of Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and People for Animals (PFA), two NGOs, to assist prosecution in the case.

"We will oppose Mr Pataudi's bail plea. The bail would allow him to use influence to weaken the case. Unless the police nab other accused absconding to record their statements and recover Honda Accord car, Mr Pataudi should not get bail," Vineet Bajaj, counsel of PFA and WTI, said.

Accusing the police of making "concerted efforts" to save Mr Pataudi, Naresh Kadyan, Haryana Chapter President of PFA, said: "Police is taking so much interest only in Mr Pataudi, while other accused persons are elusive."

The absconding accused are Shashi Singh, Dayal Singh, Shaheed Ahmad, Gyasuddin, Mahmood Ayub Khan, and Balwan Singh. Police had unsuccesfully conducted raids at several places in Haryana, Delhi and Uttar pradesh to nab them.

The CJM Court on Saturday had remanded Mr Pataudi to one day police custody for his interrogation after adjourning his bail plea.

 
SOURCE : The Pioneer, Monday, June 20, 2005
 


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